EVANSTON, IL — Evanston schools were placed on a soft lockdown Friday afternoon on the advice of the Evanston Police Department after officers were called to the area of Michigan Avenue and Main Street, where police said an “emotionally disturbed person” had barricaded themselves in an apartment building.
Evanston/Skokie School District 65 Superintendent Devon Horton announced the lockdown shortly after 12:30 p.m.
Two hours later, Horton said administrators had been cleared by police to lift the lockdown for all schools except Lincoln Elementary School, Nichols Middle School and Park School.
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The location of the police standoff is about two blocks from Lincoln Elementary.
“All of our students and staff are safe and buildings remain secure,” Horton said in a message to staff and families.
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“This decision continues to be out of an abundance of caution,” he said. “We will not dismiss students until we receive the all-clear from the police department. “
Police said there has been no threat to any of the schools, and the advice to put schools and daycares on soft lockdown is a “precautionary measure.”
Parents do not need to take any action, and there is no shelter-in-place order issued for the general public, according to police.
During a soft lockdown, classrooms doors are locked and no one can come and go from campus, but classes otherwise continue as normal.
Officers from the Northern Illinois Police Alarm System, a suburban SWAT team, were called to the area to assist Evanston police. Officers in the area could be heard giving commands over a loudspeaker.
Staff from Trilogy Behavioral Health were also present at the apartment building, police said in a social media post.
No information about the barricaded person or whether they are presumed to be armed was immediately available from a police spokesperson.
This is a developing story, more information will be added as it is received
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